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Care2 is the largest and most trusted information and action site for people who care to make a difference in their lives and the world.Care2.com send We hate spam. We do not sell or share the email addresses you provide.86 commentsAn estimated 100,000 dead drum fish have washed up in the Arkansas river, reports CNN.

What's going on in Arkansas? Yesterday I wrote here about the dead red-winged blackbirds that fell out of the sky in Beebe, Arkansas on New Year's Eve. Officials originally estimated their number at around 1,000, but now say there could be as many as 5,000 dead blackbirds.

And now all these fish?

From CNN:

Arkansas officials are investigating the death of an estimated 100,000 fish in the state's northwest, but suspect disease was to blame, a state spokesman said Sunday.

Dead drum fish floated in the water and lined the banks of a 20-mile stretch of the Arkansas River near Ozark, about 125 miles northwest of Little Rock, said Keith Stephens of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. A tugboat operator discovered the fish kill Thursday night, and fisheries officials collected some of the dying animals to conduct tests.

Stephens said fish kills occur every year, but the size of the latest one is unusual, and suggested some sort of disease was to blame.

Ozark lies about 125 miles west of Beebe.

Drumfish are a bottom-feeding fish, not a game fish, and as you can see in this video, Arkansas officials are encouraging people to keep fishing.

Members in Help Wildlife Impacted by the BP Oil Spill Breaking: Gulf Oil Disaster Bird Species Impacts Released. Why the number disparity? Interesting http://bit.ly/90bM9w For the first time, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) has just released a catalog of bird species impacted by the Gulf oil disaster. The information is being released in the wake of a National Wildlife Federation Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking the data.

Right now, wealthy corporate polluters are lobbying hard for loose regulation of coal ash -- a toxic substance that pollutes drinking water and poisons fish and the bald eagles, ospreys and other wildlife that eat them.

Already more than 4,100 Defenders have spoken out for safer wildlife and cleaner drinking water. But we need at least 10,000 caring people to make their voices heard before Friday. If you haven't already done so, please take action right now. Or, if you've signed Credo Action's petition already, please forward this message to at least three friends and encourage them to get involved too.

For the past 30 years coal companies have decimated Appalachia while the federal government has turned a blind eye. Nearly a quarter of the land in some counties has been permitted for surface coal mining. Mountaintop removal is a horrific method of mining in which the top third of a mountain is literally blasted to bits and then dumped directly into nearby streams, poisoning both wildlife and human communities.

In April the EPA took an unprecedented step toward reining in coal polluters by issuing draft guidelines that would reduce negative water quality impacts from mountaintop removal. But now the EPA is under political and legal attack from coal companies and politicians who are profiting from the destruction. Please click on the link below to tell the EPA not to back down from the proposed restrictions on mountaintop removal.

Pro-coal supporters are flooding the EPA with comments, so your voice is desperately needed to protect Appalachia from further destruction. Please take action today.

Click here to find out more and take action.

If you have trouble following the link, go to http://action.biologicaldiversity.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=5215.

Sample letter:

Subject: Strengthen MTR Guidance, EPA-HQ-OW-2010-0315

Thank you for developing guidance to curtail water pollution from mountaintop-removal coal mining. As your agency is well aware, surface coal mining in Appalachia is killing and poisoning wildlife and destroying water supplies for human communities, and we applaud the EPA for developing guidance to address these impacts.

The best available science clearly demonstrates that the impacts of mountaintop removal are “pervasive and irreversible” and that “current attempts to regulate mountaintop removal practices are inadequate” (Palmer et al. 2010, Science 327).

I applaud the EPA for recognizing the need to address the best available science by issuing this valuable guidance to ensure that regional staff will finally follow Clean Water Act requirements calling for an end to one of the devastating impacts of mountaintop-removal coal mining. However, the EPA must further increase protections by not permitting any more valley fills. I urge the EPA to assure that state and federal agencies do not issue permits that are contrary to the clear science and legal requirements discussed in the guidance. These initial guidance steps are important, but stream protections must be made permanent via a rule-making.

Mountaintop removal is known to cause elevated conductivity, and levels of conductivity below valley fills have not been shown to decline over time. Science clearly shows that conductivity is a reliable indicator of stream health. Moreover, loss of stream life indicates much broader dangers to ecosystems and the people who depend on them. The health of aquatic life and people living near and relying on these streams is jeopardized by mountaintop removal. Endangered mussels, fish and numerous other rare species are being sacrificed to surface coal mining. More than 2,000 miles of streams have already been destroyed and we cannot afford to lose more, especially unique and vital headwater streams. Because of this, I strongly urge the EPA to strengthen this guidance.

Stream creation does not mitigate for stream loss, especially for headwater streams. Also, the EPA must not establish a policy of sequencing its approval of valley fills because both the EPA and the Army Corps have the duty up-front to prevent significant degradation of waters from happening before any permit is issued. After-the-fact monitoring is not a legal or effective substitute for preventing significant harm and loss of waters in the first place. The people and wildlife of central Appalachia must not be used in an experiment to find out if high conductivity downstream from mountaintop removal sites can be prevented or reduced after a mine has started.

Scientific research suggests that one valley fill is too many because the unique headwater streams filled are lost forever, along with all of the ecological services they provide. On top of that, every valley fill becomes a source of pollution that contaminates the watershed downstream.

Because mountaintop removal and valley fills are an environmental justice issue, EPA should both take specific steps in the permitting process to collect information about public health impacts, and should fund research to further develop this vital information to fully understand the impacts of valley fills on public health.

If you're away from home and "in need of a little extra color, comfort, and companionship—but no extra effort," the last thing that you need is a live animal trapped in a glass bowl to brighten up your room. Yet Kimpton Hotel & Restaurant Group continues to rent out live betta fish to its guests as room decorations as part of its "Guppy Love" program, claiming that the animals are "perfectly content in large, unheated tanks or smaller glass bowls."

Nothing could be further from the truth. A stagnant glass bowl is a far cry from the warm shallows of rice paddies, fertile ponds, and streams that betta fish enjoy in their native Southeast Asia. Renting fish out to guests as if they were inanimate objects is nothing short of cruel.

The Kimpton Hotel & Restaurant Group needs to know that animals are not novelties or decorations. Please contact the company and urge its management to end the fish-rental program today!

The Kimpton Hotel & Restaurant Group bills itself as a "pioneer" with progressive policies, but the hotel chain's "Guppy Love" program is anything but progressive (or loving!). This insensitive ploy uses betta fish as decorations, renting them out to guests who are "in need of a little extra color, comfort, and companionship—but no extra effort …." PETA has reached out to Kimpton directly in writing and by phone, but our concerns have fallen on deaf ears. Kimpton's news release erroneously states, "Unlike many varieties of fish, bettas don't require aeration and are perfectly content in large, unheated tanks or smaller glass bowls, making an ideal in-room companion." In reality, betta fish are native to Asia, where they live in the warm shallows of rice paddies, fertile ponds, and streams. In captivity, they require a rich environment with at least 10 gallons of water (they damage their fins when they are deprived of adequate space) kept at 75 to 80 degrees. Being jostled around in tiny glass bowls hardly fits the bill.

Please join us today in calling on the Kimpton Hotel & Restaurant Group to do the right thing and stop using fish as props for the fleeting amusement of guests. Please politely urge Kimpton CEO Mike Depatie to end the fish rental program.

Personalized letters always work best. Feel free to send the sample letter provided, but your message will carry more weight if you write your own customized message and subject line.

I was very disappointed to learn that the Kimpton Hotel & Restaurant Group allows guests of its hotels to rent fish. Many visitors are drawn to your four-star boutique hotels because of the company's progressive, animal-friendly policies that accompany the upscale accommodations. This is not one of those policies, and I hope that you will do away with this insensitive program.

Regardless of their size or shape, animals are not trinkets or novelties and shouldn't be shuffled from room to room or stored on a shelf awaiting the next guest. The journal Fish and Fisheries recently cited more than 500 research papers on fish intelligence and concluded that fish are smart animals with sophisticated social structures--they can use tools and have impressive long-term memories. I agree that fish are beautiful, but that does not mean they should be used as decorations. Would you please make your company policies reflect compassion for all animals and stop using fish as decorative props for the fleeting amusement of guests?

Joaquin Phoenix struggles underwater, panic in his eyes and on his face. The award-winning actor may be best-known for roles such as his Oscar-nominated turn in The Master, but in this brand-new PETA video, he plays a new part: re-enacting the terror of a fish who is pulled from the water. The eye-catching ad was shot by shark expert and fellow animal advocate Michael Muller. Joaquin has been devoted to the well-being of animals from a tender age. He recalls the moment when he first realised that fish, just like us, suffer and feel pain: I was 3-years-old – to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one fish was caught, he was writhing, then he was thrown against the side of the boat. You couldn't disguise what it was. This was what we did to animals to eat them. The animal went from a living, vibrant creature fighting for life to a violent death. I recognised it, as did my brothers and sisters.

As the compassionate leading man knows, fish are intelligent animals with unique personalities – and as research has shown, many of them have long-term memories and can learn and retain new information. Scientists who study pain are also in complete agreement that the pain response in fish is basically identical to the pain response in mammals and birds. However, the fish industry slaughters more than 6 billion fish for food each year. Every single one of these fish is caught in a net or impaled with a hook and stolen from the water or bred on a cramped fish farm. Each one fights for breath, feeling his or her chest move slower and slower before finally dying an agonising death. Without any legal protection from cruel treatment, these complex animals are maimed, crushed, suffocated or cut open and gutted, all while they're still conscious. Fish don't want to suffocate on land just as we don't want to drown in water. You can stop their suffering by refusing to eat them. Take the pledge to go vegan. Go Vegan And Feel Great in 30 Days! Yes, I want to eat better, feel better and stop supporting cruelty to chickens, pigs, cows, fish and other animals raised for food. By signing my name, I pledge to explore veganism for at least 30 days."

You did it! Breakthrough for Bering Sea!Posted by Cassady Sharp (leader)

Yesterday afternoon in Juneau, Alaska, the North Pacific Fishery Management Council took a huge step forward to protect the Grand Canyons of the Sea. Despite considerable pressure from powerful fishing interests – the Council will now move forward to identify key coral areas in the Bering Sea Canyons and consider measures to protect them. Translation: we got what we wanted!

After eight days of relentless presentations and discussions on the Bering Sea Canyons issue, with so many ups and downs I could not possibly predict where we would end up on this roller coaster ride. The Council moved forward, unanimously, with two motions to begin a process that can, finally, protect the Bering Sea Canyons, and the vibrant ecosystem and productive fisheries they support.

Without the dedicated efforts of you signing our petition and sharing with your friends and family, we wouldn't be celebrating this amazing breakthrough with you!

So thank you and stay tuned for the next way you can join in a green and peaceful future!

Posted at 6:15 AMPermalinkComments (3)-->How many times have people asked vegetarians that question? My favorite variation came from the restaurant owner who told me brusquely, “A lot of vegetarians eat fish!” I replied, “A lot eat steaks, too, but we don’t count them.”Is fish really good for you? What are you missing out on besides some cholesterol and, often, a good dose of mercury? Well, according to the Australian government’s OzFood Network, poorly cooked or processed eggs, fish, and milkshakes were the worst offenders in 346 cases of food poisoning during the last three months of 2010, in which 5,329 people reported being poisoned, 20 died, and 153 were hospitalized.Food poisoning typically takes the form of diarrhea, vomiting, numbness, “skin tingling,” and the chills. Would you like fries with that?The good news is that plant-based foods can give you all the nutrients you need, including omega-3 fatty acids, without the health risks that you might incur from eating rotting flesh.So, the next time people ask you whether eating fish is good for you, suggest that they do something that is much better for their health: Ask them to pledge to go vegan for 30 days. You’ll be doing them, the planet, and animals a big favor.